


You put the ace in place

by 5ftjewishcactus



Series: Pl(ace) [2]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Alive Cole Anderson, Asexual Character, Asexual Relationship, Asexuality, Canon Compliant, F/F, Falling In Love, Feelings, Gender or Sex Swap, Happy Ending, Mentions of Sex Attempts, No Smut, Past Relationship(s), Self Confidence Issues, Self-Acceptance, Self-Doubt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-16
Updated: 2019-08-16
Packaged: 2020-09-02 06:21:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20271352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/5ftjewishcactus/pseuds/5ftjewishcactus
Summary: Hana Anderson struggled for years with her identity. Never quite felt like she fit in with her peers. After many failed relationships and lots of self-discovery, Hana eventually becomes comfortable in who she is and finds happiness.





	You put the ace in place

**Author's Note:**

> This was a difficult fic to write because of how much of my own experiences as an asexual person I was putting into it. While Hank's experiences aren't exactly my own, there are a lot of things that I did experience. Especially before I found out about asexuality. I was lucky that I was only twenty-two when I found out about asexuality. But it is something that I wish I could've learned sooner. Would've saved myself a lot of heartache. But hopefully, like Hank, I too one day will find my happy ending.
> 
> Thank you to my wonderful friends in the Animal Farm discord for helping me as I wrote this and encouraged me.
> 
> Like my other fics, this one has also been converted to f/f. Part one is m/m, part two is f/f, if that's something you'd be interested in.

When Hana was younger, she'd always felt like she didn't quite fit in with many of her other friends. They joked and made comments about the guys they were sleeping with. Hana knew most of them were talking a lot of shit compared to the actual action they were getting. Hana tried to avoid engaging in the discussions, but her teammates on the basketball team were quick to drag her in, showing her pictures of swimsuit and scantily clad men in magazines, so Hana would pretend. Claim the men were sexy and intriguing and she wanted a piece of that action. It was all lies. While the men (and women) in the magazines were objectively attractive, Hana didn't find them sexually appealing. She wasn't interested in sex at all. She didn't know why. It was just how she felt.  
  
As their senior year was heading towards its end, several of Hana's closest friends were confessing how they'd finally lost their virginity. Hana hadn't yet. Had no desire to. But as more of her friends spoke about their escapades, the more Hana felt like something was wrong. That maybe she was… broken. Her high school sweetheart adored her and the fact that she hadn't pushed him yet for sex. Hana couldn't tell him it was because she wasn't interested in it. She adored him, he was smart and funny and kind. He wanted to go to college to get his degree in chemistry. They'd met freshmen year because Hana had needed a tutor for her science class.  
  
It ended up being Gene who tried initiating their first time. They were at a party at a friend's house, after the last game of the season. They'd all been drinking since the team captain's parents were out of town. It was easy for Hana then to claim she was too drunk for sex. Gene was disappointed, but understanding. Hana was relieved, more than she felt she should be, which in turn made her feel guilty. The next time though, Hana didn't have the excuse of alcohol. She'd spent the entire afternoon at Gene's house, watching movies with him and helping cook dinner. He'd been on her the minute they'd been alone in him room. She'd fumbled her way through that first time, getting Gene off with her hands and mouth. The next time, Gene had attempted to eat her out. She'd managed to turn the focus on him and getting him off, while she faked her way through her own. After that, Hana came up with reasons to distance herself from him. She felt bad doing it, but she couldn't keep trying to do something she didn't want to do.  
  
Trying to talk to her mother about it was even harder. It was like her mother didn't want to discuss sex with her daughter and only managed an awkward "Good job" after asking Hana if she'd remembered to use protection. Hana shifted her focus on finishing the school year, preparing for finals. She already had a basketball scholarship, if she wanted it. She was thinking of joining the police academy, become a cop like her mom. While her mother was proud of her basketball achievements, she only saw it as a hobby, something Hana did to further her academic career.  
  
Which admittedly Hana had originally tried out for the basketball team because it would look good on her college applications. But she found she enjoyed the sport a great deal. She liked being part of a team, part of a community. Plus, it felt like something that was hers and not something her mom had pushed her into. A small part of her wanted to go to college on her basketball scholarship. But the practical part of her knew basketball wouldn't pan out in the end. She'd have an actual career becoming a cop. And it would make her mom proud.  
  
Gene was understanding that Hana's academics came first, but he kept trying to get her to come over, claiming they could study together. Especially as prom neared. Hana wasn't even sure if she wanted to go to prom. There was too much pressure associated with it. Between her friends and their comments about the infamous on-goings of prom night and what she was sure Gene expected. It made Hana feel sick. That ended up being her excuse the night of prom. She told Gene she couldn't make it, that she was sick, food poisoning and that she was sorry. He was disappointed but told her to feel better. she stayed at home all night, feeling guilty as hell for lying to him, but she couldn't face him.  
  
Two days before graduation, Gene dumped her. Claimed it was because he was going out of state for college, but Hana knew it was because she'd been pushing him away. It was for the best. Hana walked graduation, went to the post-graduation party, and then went home, alone. She threw herself into the academy. She was going to be a cop and she was going to make her mother proud. That was fine, that was good. She pushed thoughts of Gene and sex out of her head. And life went on.  
  
Until she met Francine, a fellow cadet. Frankie was great. She was kind and funny and she pushed Hana to work harder every day. They'd started in a sort of competition until one day when Frankie turned the tables and began flirting with Hana. At first, Hana thought it was just a means to psych her out, but then she realized Frankie meant it. The flirting went back and forth for weeks until Hana finally asked Frankie out on a date. They went to dinner and a movie and Frankie kissed her at the end of the date. Both of them being cadets meant that dates were whenever they had a spare weekend, around the homework and training. Sometimes they'd just find a quiet corner to study in together and curl together on a couch in the dorms to watch TV. It was nice. Hana appreciated that Frankie wasn't pushing for anything more.  
  
Then during a four day weekend, just the two of them in the dorms, Frankie asked if Hana wanted to try. She knew by then that Hana was a virgin when it came to sex with another woman. Hana had decided she was willing to try. She was wondering if maybe she was gay and if that was why sex with Gene had been uncomfortable. She liked him, adored him, but something was missing. Hana just wasn't sure what. So she and Frankie tried. Frankie was kind and patient and understanding when Hana struggled. Even held Hana as she cried.  
  
"I'm broken," Hana sobbed, burying her head into Frankie's shoulder.  
  
"Oh sweetheart, you aren't broken. Sex is complicated and sometimes it just doesn't work."  
  
Hana nodded but she didn't believe it. They spent the rest of the weekend curled up watching TV and cuddling. Nothing more. Even their kisses were chaste. Over the following weeks, Hana took Frankie's suggestion to masturbate and see what she liked. She wasn't even sure what to think about, so she tried pulling up a porn video but found it difficult to watch two strangers have sex. So instead she focused on what she was familiar with. She thought about Frankie, how attractive she was, how nice she'd look naked. After trying for several minutes, Hana gave up. She wasn't enjoying it, it wasn't doing anything for her. No matter how much she tried to focus on Frankie or how it felt to rub her clit, there was just nothing. It left her feeling empty. Feeling broken. She was broken. There was no point denying it.  
  
Hana didn't know how to talk to Frankie about it, just like she hadn't known how to talk to Gene about it, so she did was she knew how to do and threw herself into her studies. It was easier that way. Frankie, bless her, called Hana out on it. Told her she couldn't ignore her problems forever. Hana knew that. She did. But she also knew Frankie deserved better. Deserved someone who wasn't broken. Frankie tried to fight her on it, said she wasn't going to give up on Hana, that they could figure it out together. But Hana stood firm. She'd made her choice. Even if it meant her unhappiness. When Frankie finally left, Hana curled into her bed and cried.  
  
She didn't try dating again for the rest of her academic career. Focused on her studies, on her training. She'd grown up with her mom training her to one day be a cop, so training at the academy wasn't much different. More physical in some aspects. But Hana liked it. She liked her studies, liked the training and working herself physically. She made a friend with one of her fellow trainees, Jessica Fowler. Jess was engaged to her high school sweetheart, who was attending the University of Michigan for business management. They invited Hana over for dinner a couple of times and Hana hoped to one day find the same happiness they had.  
  
She graduated from the academy top of her class, Valedictorian. Offered a job at Detroit Police Department, under Jessica's mother, Captain Jessica Fowler Sr. Hana worked hard, was a good cop. It was her third year that she met Karter. He worked at a bank as a teller that had a robbery attempt. He'd been the one to disarm the would-be robber. Flipped the man onto his back when he'd tried to grab him to use as a hostage. Hana was impressed. But she was also a professional. It was Karter who made the first move, sending Hana a box of Thank You donuts and his phone number. Hana called him that night and asked him out on a date.  
  
They went to dinner with plans for a movie afterward, but they talked so much during dinner, they missed the movie times. For their second date, they went bowling and Kai beat her by eighteen points. She kissed him afterward when she dropped him off at his house. It was during their third date, at Kai's house where he'd made them dinner, that Hana confessed that she thought she was broken, that sex hadn't been a good experience for her.  
  
"Oh, darling. You aren't broken," Kai said. "But you might be asexual."  
  
"Like a plant?" Hana asked.  
  
"No. Asexuality is when someone doesn't experience sexual attraction. Many asexual people don't engage in sexual activity. It's perfectly normal."  
  
Hana stared at him a moment, unsure how she felt.  
  
"I'll be right back."  
  
Kai disappeared into his bedroom before returning with his laptop. He opened it and pulled up various web pages on asexuality and handed the computer to Hana to read. Hana read everything. When she was done, she was crying. Happy tears this time.  
  
"I'm not broken," she said.  
  
"No, you're not, darling," Kai replied.  
  
"And you're…? Is this okay?"  
  
"Yeah. I like you, Hana. A lot."  
  
For the first time in a while, Hana was happy. Things were good with her job and her love life. Something she thought she'd never have. She and Karter continued to date for the next three years. Got engaged and were married by the end of the fourth year. During their fifth year together, they decided to adopt a young boy named Cole. He was four years old and had only known his foster home his entire life. Hana adored her son. She loved being a mother. She'd been worried, with her strained relationship with her mother, that she wouldn't know how to be one. But she found being a mother to be one of the best things to happen to her.  
  
It was two years later that things took a turn. Hana had worked her way up to Lieutenant, after extensive work with the Red Ice Task Force. she thought things at home were good, too. Cole was doing well in school. Kai had taken a new job that seemed to make him happy. So Hana felt a bit blindsided when Kai sat her down one night (one of the rare nights they both had off) and said he'd been thinking for a while and he realized he wasn't happy anymore. Not because Hana didn't make him happy and it had nothing to do with their lack of sex life. His new job had shown him that his life had stalled and something needed to change. He'd been offered a promotion, a job in Greece if he wanted it. And he did. Very much. So Hana let him go.  
  
He kept in touch, calling and texting most days and video chats on the weekends with Cole. But even before he'd left, Hana knew it was only a matter of time before their marriage was over. Sure enough, three months after he'd left, Kai requested a divorce. Hana signed the papers. The only thing she wanted was sole custody of Cole and Kai was willing to give her that.  
  
Hana struggle for a while. Jessica and Bev were there for her, helping her as needed. Jessica made sure she had primarily day shifts, so she could be home in the evenings with Cole. Cole's friends' parents helped, too, letting Cole come over after school until Hana got off work. They even helped out when Cole joined the basketball team at school, making sure he got home from practices and to and from games if Hana wasn't able to be there. Her neighbor, Margot, would watch Cole whenever Hana was called to a crime scene late at night.  
  
Bev, in a bid to try to ease the loneliness for both Hana and Cole, suggested they adopt a dog. Cole approved of this idea wholeheartedly and so Hana ended up at the animal shelter with Cole, staring into the cage of a four-year-old Saint Bernard.  
  
"I want that one!" Cole said.  
  
And Hana couldn't say no. So, they adopted the Saint Bernard and Cole named him Sumo.  
  
Hana's therapist agreed that a dog was good for them, good for Cole. Hana liked her therapist. Doreen was an older woman, only a few years older than Hana herself and an out and proud lesbian who knew of asexuality when Hana first started seeing her but had jumped at the opportunity to do more research and expand his knowledge. Even though Kai had been the one to help Hana realize she was asexual, a part of Hana still blamed her lack of sex drive on Kai leaving. And she still had a lot of baggage from her previous relationships. Feared that she'd never find love, not when so much of society seemed to function on the idea of sex. It was a lot to work through, but Hana was glad she made the plunge. When Cole started acting out, Doreen recommended a therapist for him to see, too.  
  
Three years passed before things changed for the better. Androids had become commonplace for a while in society. While Hana had never thought about buying one of her own, she knew that a couple of Cole's friends had ones and that Cole liked them well enough. Hana just felt that if she bought one, to help with Cole, that she'd be admitting failure, that she wasn't able to take care of her son herself. Somehow it was easier to accept the help of people than purchase an android to take care of her son. Then something happened. Several somethings. There was a shift somewhere, change on the horizon and that was when Hana met Connie. Some androids had started to deviate, go against or away from their programming. Some had been hostile, had hurt people, their owners. Connie had been created by Cyberlife to hunt and stop deviants and she was assigned to Hana as a partner.  
  
Less than a week and an android revolution later, Connie was a newly deviated android with nowhere to go. Cole insisted Connie stay with them. In the short time, Hana had become fond of the android. Connie was a good woman if a little misguided by her programming. She'd broken through, deviated with the rest of them, in the end, and even helped the revolution turn the tide in androids' favor. While she couldn't return to work with Hana, she did what she could to help Marcella and the others as they planned to meet with the President and other officials in DC. Hana encouraged her to go, even as their relationship began to shift.  
  
"Are you sure I should go?" Connie asked. "I'm gonna miss you."  
  
Hana chuckled. "Yeah, I'm gonna miss you, too, but it'll be good for you to go. Help your people. We can talk every night."  
  
Connie smiled at that, as they'd sat on the couch with a Gears game on, while Cole played his handheld game system in the chair. That night, Hana invited Connie to share her bed, for platonic cuddles. Most nights Connie "slept" on the couch. Sometimes Sumo would curl up with her. Tonight, the large dog curled up at the end of the bed, while Hana cuddled Connie.  
  
The next morning, both Hana and Cole gave Connie great big hugs before she left for the week.  
  
As promised, they spoke every night. Cole would always take a few moments to talk to Connie, ask what she thought about DC, ask if Connie was gonna bring him a souvenir (Connie had already bought several) before leaving her mom to talk with Connie alone.  
  
"I… I hope it's okay that I bought you some souvenirs too," Connie said.  
  
"You didn't have to, but thank you," Hana replied.  
  
"Of course I had to, Hana. I wouldn't be here without you. Or Cole. I don't know how else to thank you both."  
  
"Connie, you don't have to buy us stuff. Just… do good work with Marcella and come home to us."  
  
There was a beat of silence followed by a soft hum.  
  
"Home," Connie said with a wistful sigh.  
  
Hana smiled, too, even though Connie couldn't see it. "Yeah, home. I mean… if you don't mind living with us."  
  
"Oh, Hana. Of course, I don't mind. I…" Connie paused a moment. "You're both very important to me. Sumo too."  
  
"You're important to us, too. Sumo especially. I don't spoil him like you do."  
  
Connie chuckled. There was a sound in the background and Connie sighed. "We have dinner plans with a senator."  
  
"Go. Try to have fun despite the politics."  
  
"I will. Marcella and Josie are far better at the conversation aspect of negotiations. North jokes that she and I are just the eye candy."  
  
"Nah, you two are the bodyguards."  
  
"She'll like that. Have a good night, Hana."  
  
"You too, Con."  
  
Hana went back to watch the news until Cole had finished his homework and came back to join Hana for a couple of episodes of their favorite sitcom before bed. Connie text Hana a picture of the dinner that was set up for them, with North in the background looking peeved. The caption read: "Senator spent all this money to wine and dine us and we can't even enjoy it." Hana sent a laughing emoji back.  
  
A couple more days passed before Connie sent word that they would be coming home the next day. There was more work to be done, but Marcella and Josie were ready to come home and do more work closer to home. There was also the fact Carla still wasn't doing well and Marcella wanted to spend as much time with her mother as possible. She'd only agreed to the DC trip because Carla had insisted upon it.  
  
Connie's flight got in early that afternoon, so Hana took a late lunch to pick her up. She waited outside the gate for Connie to appear and Connie practically raced into Hana's arms. Hana held her close, glad to have her home.  
  
"I missed you," Connie whispered.  
  
"I missed you, too," Hana replied.  
  
"Do you have to go back to work?" Connie asked.  
  
"Yeah, eventually."  
  
Connie nodded. They went to baggage claim and waited for Connie's suitcase.  
  
"I was thinking," Hana said, as she and Connie watched the incoming suitcases, "you could drop me back at work and then surprise Cole by picking him up after school. And then tonight, you two can pick me up and we'll go to dinner."  
  
"I'd like that. But what if you need your car?"  
  
"I'll ride with Bev."  
  
Connie smiled. Soon enough her suitcase came around and she grabbed it. They went out to Hana's car and she drove them towards Chicken Feed so she could grab food before returning to the station.  
  
"Hana," Connie said, as Hana pulled the car into the parking lot.  
  
"Yeah, Con?" Hana asked.  
  
She could tell Connie had something on her mind, as she took an unneeded deep breathe, her LED cycling yellowing as she tried to calm herself. Hana didn't want to interrupt her, but she wanted to do something to help. She reached over and held one of Connie's hands. Connie smiled at her and squeezed Hana's hand in return.  
  
"I… I care about you, a great deal," Connie said, LED still spinning yellow as she spoke. "I have… feelings for you."  
  
Hana smiled, great big grin as a blush formed on her cheeks. "Oh, Connie. I feel the same way." She squeezed Connie's hand. "After Kai and I divorced, I thought maybe that was it for me. That… I wasn't meant to have this. But… I'm glad to be proven wrong." Hana lifted Connie's hand and kissed her knuckles.  
  
"Oh, Hana." Connie blushed, honest to g-d blushed, a light dusting of pink on her cheeks that Hana hadn't known Connie (or any androids) was capable of.  
  
Hana's phone pinged at her and she swore. "I have to get back to work, but… we'll talk later. Okay?"  
  
Connie nodded. "Cole and I will be here."  
  
Hana smiled and kissed Connie's knuckles again before exiting the car. Connie followed, and as she walked around the front, Hana pulled her into one last hug. Hana went back to work, quickly eating her lunch at her desk while working on the paperwork she'd left half-finished when she'd gone to pick up Connie.  
  
There was one crime scene to investigate all afternoon, a robbery at a local pawnshop. Stolen items included spare android parts. From what Hana could determine from the surveillance footage before it was hacked, were two figures dressed in black and wearing masks had broken in to steal the parts. At least one of the figures was an android, a flash of an LED light from under the hoodie the suspect wore. The owner wasn't going to press charges, figured if it was an android stealing back android parts. He just wanted to have the police report for insurance purposes.  
  
Hana was finishing up the paperwork for that when Cole came racing over to her.  
  
"Mom!" Cole all but yelled, skidding to a halt besides Hana's desk.  
  
"Hey, peanut. I'm just about done," Hana replied.  
  
She finished typing and submitted the report. With another couple of clicks, she shut down her terminal for the night. She turned to her son and smiled.  
  
"Alright. I'm ready," she said.  
  
Hana glanced towards Fowler's office to see that she wasn't currently busy.  
  
"Go tell Auntie Jess we're out of here," Hana said, nudging Cole towards Fowler's office.  
  
Cole beamed and raced towards the large, glass office. "Auntie Jess! I'm stealing mom!"  
  
Hana stood and pulled on her jacket while Cole hugged Fowler.  
  
"Have a good night, Hana," Fowler said, standing at the door of her office as Cole bound back over to her.  
  
"You too, Jess," Hana replied.  
  
She walked with Cole out to the parking lot where Connie was waiting by the car. They smiled at each other and Hana could feel herself blushing.  
  
"Are you two going to kiss?" Cole asked.  
  
Hana chuckled and playfully shoved Cole towards the car. "Get in."  
  
She and Connie did not kiss, though Hana did give Connie another hug as they passed each other, so Hana could drive them to dinner. Cole talked the whole way to the restaurant, informing Hana about how all his homework was done, yes even his math homework, which Connie had helped him with because multiplication was hard. Hana was grateful that Connie had been able to help. It had been years since Hana had learned her multiplication and somewhere between then and now the rules of math had changed and Hana had felt as confused as Cole.  
  
Eventually, Hana pulled into the restaurant parking lot. Cole had chosen breakfast for dinner so Hana had driven to one of their favorite breakfast restaurants. The hostess led them to a booth near the back (Hana always liked the ones near the back so she could watch the front) and left them to ponder over the menu.  
  
"Now remember, peanut, you can't take home anything you don't eat, so only order what you'll actually eat," Hana said, as Cole flipped to the page featuring the various pancake stacks.  
  
"I know, mom," Cole replied.  
  
Hana shook her head. Cole always did this, ordered with his eyes and not his stomach and weeks later, Hana's fridge would be a scary laboratory of growing fungi from uneaten food and Hana was trying to put her foot down because she was tired of cleaning out her fridge from Cole's uneaten leftovers. Especially when it involved food that Hana wouldn't just take and eat herself before it went bad. Hana sighed and glanced down at her menu, contemplating an omelet when she realized Connie wasn't looking at her menu. Because she didn't eat.  
  
"Ah shit, Con, I'm sorry," she said.  
  
"It's fine, Hana. You two need dinner. Besides, Cole has already promised to let me sample the chocolate chip chocolate pancakes."  
  
"He did, huh?" Hana asked, looking over at her son who smiled a great big, gaped tooth smile at her. "Those pancakes have far too much sugar."  
  
"But mom," Cole said, elongating the words, "Connie has to try chocolate chip chocolate pancakes!"  
  
"One," Hana said, holding up her finger. "One pancake for you to eat and let Connie sample. The rest need to be regular or whole wheat."  
  
"Fine," Cole pouted.  
  
Hana shook her head again. She wasn't going to give in to her son's pouting. Not after the last time Cole had ordered all chocolate chip chocolate pancakes, neither of them had slept that night because of the stomach ache Cole had ended up with. Hana remembered in vivid detail how miserable her son had been. She wondered if it was some weird defense mechanism kids had that they seemed to forget those events.  
  
Once food and drinks were ordered, Cole pulled out his phone and began texting and playing games.  
  
"That goes back in your pocket once our food arrives," Hana reminded.  
  
"Yes, mom," Cole said.  
  
Hana sighed. Connie chuckled.  
  
"You know, you're signing up for this, too," Hana said, motioning towards Cole.  
  
"I know. I did think about that, while I was gone. I missed you both and you're both very important to me," Connie replied.  
  
Hana reached across the table and Connie did the same, so they could hold hands. Cole groaned and sunk farther in his chair. Hana nudged one of Cole's feet with her own.  
  
"Hey, peanut… are you okay with this?" she asked.  
  
"What? You and Connie? Yeah," Cole replied, looking at his mom over his cellphone. "Connie and I talked about it when she picked me up from school."  
  
Hana glanced at Connie and smiled, before looking back at her son. "Okay, well…"  
  
"Mom, I want you to be happy. I know dad leaving us wasn't easy," Cole said, setting his phone down on the table. "Besides, I didn't knock out that face stealing asshole just so Connie would leave forever."  
  
"Okay. That's fair. I want you to be happy, too, peanut."  
  
"And I am." Cole picked up his phone again and went back to playing one of his mobile games. "Though, I would be happier if I got a new game system as well as a new mom for Chanukah this year."  
  
Hana was about to tell Cole not to push his luck about the gaming system when his words registered in Hana's mind. She looked over at Connie, who also seemed to be processing the words Cole had said.  
  
"You… you see me as a parent?" Connie asked.  
  
"Well… yeah. If you and mom are together now, then that would make you…" Cole trailed off as he looked between Connie and Hana. "Did I mess this up?"  
  
"No, peanut, you didn't mess it up. I think there's a lot we need to talk about. Probably after dinner," Hana replied.  
  
"Cool," Cole said and went back to his phone.  
  
Hana smiled and squeezed Connie's hand, which she was still holding, and Connie squeezed her hand in return. They talked a bit about Connie's trip to DC, what she thought about the US Capitol, all the boring political nonsense Connie had to sit through while acting as bodyguard. The fact that Connie and North opened a single channel for the two of them to communicate through during the various meetings. Once their food arrived, Cole and Hana ate while Connie continued to tell them about DC. Connie did sample the chocolate chip chocolate pancakes and agreed with Hana's assessment that it did, in fact, have too much sugar. Cole shrugged and ate the rest of it happily.  
  
After dinner was done, Hana drove them back home where they did have their important talk. Hana didn't want any of them rushing into anything. Connie wasn't going anywhere, she lived with them and that wasn't going to change, as long as Connie didn't want it to. Cole didn't have to call Connie "mom" unless he wanted to. If he ever did. That was something else they could discuss later on if Cole ever felt differently about it. For now, Connie was just Connie.  
  
"Can we watch a movie now?" Cole asked.  
  
"Sure. Go pick something out," Hana replied, as Cole jumped up and raced into the other room where their extensive film collection lived. "An appropriate film!"  
  
Hana sank back on the couch next to Connie, who shifted to lean against her.  
  
"There's one more thing I want to discuss," Connie said.  
  
"Okay."  
  
Connie nodded. "I talked to North about this and she said it was best if I was honest with you. While I was designed to integrate with humans and functional alongside them… unlike other models, which could be upgraded for a price… as a prototype, I wasn't designed to be upgraded."  
  
"Upgraded?" Hana asked.  
  
"Yes. For… uh…" Connie glanced towards the doorway to the other room where Cole was before replying in a whisper. "Sex."  
  
"Oh! Well, that's okay," Hana replied. "We don't have to have sex. To also be honest with you, because I care about you, I don't even like sex."  
  
"You don't?" Connie asked.  
  
"Nope. I'm asexual. Sex has never meant anything to me. Not for a lack of trying and a lot of heartaches. I do like kissing though. And cuddling. If those are things you're interested in."  
  
"I very much am."  
  
Hana smiled and leaned in, gently tipping Connie's chin up and kissing her. It was a soft, chaste kiss, a mere press of lips. But somehow it was still perfect.  
  
"Ew," Cole said, as he came walking back into the room.  
  
"Ew yourself," Hana teased.  
  
Cole stuck his tongue out at his mom.  
  
"Put the movie in, ya goof," Hana chuckled.  
  
Cole popped the movie into the player and then sat on the big chair closest to the couch. Sumo moved from his spot in front of the fireplace, resting his head on the corner of the chair and whined.  
  
"Sumo," Hana warned.  
  
Sumo ignored her in favor of whining up at his favorite human, the one he could usually get extra bites of food from.  
  
"We don't both fit in the chair, buddy," Cole replied.  
  
"Boof!"  
  
Cole sighed and stood up, allowing Sumo to jump up into the chair and try to squeeze himself into a corner. Cole fit himself into the remaining space left and pet Sumo who panted happily next to him. With everyone settled, Hana played the film. She put her arm around Connie as the film began to play, smiling at her… well… she wasn't sure what to call Connie because she wasn't going to call her her girlfriend because she was too old for the word. But she smiled at Connie who smiled at her.  
  
In the back of her mind, Hana knew Doreen was gonna have a field day with this change. She'd only barely opened up about Connie and about the decision to help her during the revolution. She wondered if maybe Connie would like to see a therapist and made a mental note to ask her later. Maybe Doreen could make a recommendation for her, too. There were, of course, other things Hana would have to deal with. Like the next time Cole spoke to her father, Hana would need to let him know that yes, Hana was seeing someone else, and yes, Cole was okay with that (she'd let Cole decide when/if he told his father exactly how he felt about Connie.)  
  
But for now, for tonight, things were good. She was happy. Her little family was happy, as they sat watching a movie together. And that was all Hana wanted.

**Author's Note:**

> You can follow me on tumblr [@5ftjewishcactus](https://5ftjewishcactus.tumblr.com/) or on twitter on my main [@5ftjewishcactus](https://twitter.com/5ftjewishcatus) or on my sfw gen fandom [@2ambiace](https://twitter.com/2ambiace) or my dbh [@asexualhankcon](https://twitter.com/asexualhankcon).


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